Türkiye surcharge in Google Ads drops in 2027

A small but important change is coming to the invoice for businesses that advertise on Google in Türkiye. Google will reduce the Legal Operating Cost rate it applies for ads published in Türkiye as of January 1, 2027. This additional fee is reflected in the invoices for Google Ads and YouTube ads.

However, there is a difference between Google's own documents on what the new rate will be.

2.25 percent on email, 2.5 percent on support page

According to the information email sent by Google Payments, the Legal Operating Cost in Türkiye will decrease from 4.5 percent to 2.25 percent as of January 1, 2027. On Google's official support page, the new rate is stated as 2.5 percent. Therefore, it is not yet clear which rate will be applied in 2027.

The change covers Google Ads, YouTube Booking and Display & Video 360 services. The new rate will be reflected in the invoices or account statements of advertising transactions after January 1, 2027.

What is the Legal Operating Cost?

This item is an additional fee that Google charges to advertisers to cover regulatory compliance costs in certain countries. It is not stated that the application in Türkiye is directly related to the Digital Service Tax. Still, the rate of both regulations will drop to 2.5 percent as of January 1, 2027.

While the Digital Service Tax is collected from digital service providers, the Legal Operating Cost is passed on to advertisers by Google. For France and Italy, Google clearly states that the additional fee is linked to the costs of compliance with the Digital Services Tax legislation.

Rates increase in France and Italy

The regulation does not only cover Türkiye. As of January 1, 2027, the rate in France will increase from 2 percent to 3 percent, and the rate in Italy will increase from 2.5 percent to 3 percent.

There is no change in other countries for now. Google imposes a surcharge of 3 percent in Spain, 5 percent in Austria and 2 percent in the United Kingdom. The 2 percent fee in India was abolished on September 1, 2024, and the 2.5 percent fee in Canada ended in 2025.

The decisive factor is the country in which the advertisement is published.

The country where the ad is published is what determines the fee, not the country where the advertiser is located. For example, when a company based in Türkiye publishes an advertisement in France, the rate in France applies. For campaigns published in more than one country, the fee is calculated based on the advertising expenditures in the relevant countries.

The additional fee is shown as a separate item on Google Ads invoices, and taxes are also added to this amount. Advertisers can track outages in the Billing section of their Google Ads account.